Cleaning stand



R. H. DE WlTT CLEANING STAND July 9, 1963 Filed June 14, 1960 FIG- 5 INVENTOR.

RAYMOND H. DeWITT BY m, fi yF fl FIG. 4

AT TOR NEYS United States Patent ()fl ice 3,096,776 Patented July 9, 1963 3,096,776 CLEANING STAND Raymond H. De Witt, Plymouth, Ohio, assignor to The Fate-Root-Heath Company, Plymouth, Ohio, a corporation of Delaware Filed June 14, 1960, Ser. No. 36,066 3 Claims. (Cl. 134-174) This invention relates to a cleaning stand intended primarily and particularly suited for commercial and indus trial applications.

It is a principal object of the invention to provide conveniently used apparatus for the cleaning of motors, machine parts, gears, tools, and the like, of much greater utility than the usual type of shop bench cleaner and yet considerably less expensive than conventional cleaning facilities of larger than bench size. Size is of course a measure of utility in such apparatus, and my new cleaning stand provides a much needed facility of intermediate size and cost for the many cleaning jobs which either cannot be carried out safely with available devices or accomplished only by very ineflicient use of equipment, the tendency generally being to handle such a job by some makeshift and potentially dangerous method.

Another object is to provide such a cleaning stand for application of commercial solvents and constructed for eflioient recirculation of such a solvent.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a cleaning stand of the indicated nature in which the solvent circulating system is operative to assure cleanliness of the solvent at the delivery thereof to the stand.

An additional object is to provide an improved spray device for the discharge of the solvent against a part or assembly supported on the stand for cleaning, such spray assembly having multiple adjustments for flexibility of use and being capable of both fixed delivery in a particular adjusted position and hand-guided variably directed discharge.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent as the following description proceeds.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, the invention, then comprises the features hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims, the following description and the annexed drawings setting forth in detail certain illustrative embodiments of the invention, these being indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principle of the invention may be employed.

In said annexed drawing:

FIG. 1 is a front elevation of a cleaning stand in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation of the stand, as viewed from the left in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the top of the stand having an accessory splash shield provided therefor in operative or use position;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary top plan view of the stand on a slightly smaller scale, with the noted splash shield assembly in its storage condition; and

FIG. 5 is a section taken on the line 5-5 in FIG. 4.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, the illustrated stand comprises a sink-top of rectangular shape and having an opening 11 in one corner, at the left front, at which a short length of tubing or pipe 12 is secured to the top to depend therefrom.

A support channel 13 is secured longitudinally to the underside of the top fairly close to the rear edge of the same, and this channel is tapered to be of progressively decreasing height along its length from right to left as viewed from the front. A generally similar channel or rail 14 is fixed to the underside of the top near the front edge, but while this front channel is also tapered longitudinally in the same direction as the first, its maximum height is less than that of the rear channel 13 for a purpose Which will become apparent.

The top 10, with its attached support channels or rails 13 and 14, is supported approximately at waist height by attaching the channels to the tops of two A frames 15 and 16 providing a pair of legs at each end of the top. That is, the frame orientation is transverse with respect to the channels, and the assembly is rigidified by a shelf 17 bridging horizontally between the frames at an intermediate elevation.

The end frames 15 and 16 are of equal height, and it will accordingly be seen that the described taper of the channels 13 and 14 relative to the top 10 and to each other causes the top in the completed assembly to slope downwardly both from the rear and from the right side or, in other words, toward the front left corner aperture 11 on all sides. This arrangement of course makes the top selfdraining through the aperture and attached pipe 12.

A tank 18 containing solvent, which may be of any approved commercial type suitable, for example, for dissolving grease, is positioned on the floor partially beneath such outlet 12 of the sink-top 10. This tank is provided with a return pipe 19 of fairly large diameter which extends vertically from a point above the top of the tank through the latter to the bottom portion of the tank. The upper end of such return pipe is positioned below the outlet pipe 12 of the sink-top, and a strainer 20 is removably supported in this upper end portion. A horizontal baffie 21 is attached in slightly spaced relation below the open lower end of the return pipe 19 and is imperforate and of at least equal area.

A liquid impeller or pump 22 is suspended in the upper portion of the tank 18 and driven by a shaft 23 connected to an electric motor 24 supported externally on the top of the tank. Liquid within the tank is drawn into the impeller and forced through the attached flexible hose 25. The other end of this hose length is connected to one end of a rigid pipe 26 which is supported intermediate its ends by an adjustable bracket on an edge of the sinletop 10. Such bracket comprises a post 27 slotted at its lower end for frictional engagement on the side or flange of the top, and a set screw can be threaded through one side of the resulting fork into engagement with the top flange for firmer locking. A knuckle 28 is fitted on the top of the post and can be locked in any particular relative rotative position of adjustment by means of a thumb screw 29. The knuckle carries a transverse cylindrical holder 30 which can be rotated within the former and locked by the top hand screw 31, this holder projecting to one side and having a bore through which the pipe 26 extends and is locked by a further hand screw 32.

In any given position of the post 27, therefore, the pipe 26 can, first of all, be adjusted longitudinally or in and out relative to the sink-top by loosening the screw 32, moving the pipe endwise, and retightening the screw. The angular disposition of the pipe 26 about the horizontal axis of the knuckle can also be adjusted upon release of the top screw 31 and turning of the holder 30 within the knuckle, while the relative angular disposition of such axis can be changed by loosening the hand screw 29 and turning the knuckle 28 on the vertical post 27.

It will, moreover, be evident that the post itself can be adjustably positioned about the sides of the sinktop 10. At its remote end, over the top, the pipe 26 is provided with an elbow 33 to which a further length of flexible hose 34 is connected in the illustrated arrangement. It is preferred that such hose be equipped at its other end with :an aerator nozzle 35, and the connection between the rigid pipe 26 and the hose 34 is such that the latter can be removed for substitution of a nozzle, :at the pipe end, if desired.

In use of this cleaning stand, the particular part to be cleaned will be placed on the sink-top 10, and thev pipehose combination adjusted as may be appropriate to spray the solvent on such part. The motor-driven pump is then energized and the solvent supplied from the upper portion of the tank 18. The flexible hose 34- permits the openator to control the direction of the spray and ordinarily the hose will be guided by one hand and a brush used with the other hand to assist in dislodging particles of foreign matter from the part. The operator ing cleaning solution under pressure against a body supcould, of course, remove the flexible :hose 34 and attach I the nozzle 35, or another nozzle, to the end of the rigid pipe 26 for a fixed direction discharge should this be suitable for the particular part ,to be cleaned.

The solvent drains from the sink-top through the outlet 11, 12 and the strainer 20 to the return pipe 19 of the tank 18. The strainer catches the larger particles of dirt, grease and other foreign matter which may be flushed, and fine particles passing through the strainer with the return flow encounter the lower end baffle 21 which directs the flow generally outwardly and provides a settling action for such entrained particles. Sludge therefore settles in the bottom of the tank, from which it can be periodically removed, while the pump 22 withdraws clean solvent from the top of the tank.

One model of this cleaning stand, to illustrate a particular size thereof, is roughly three feet by four feet at its top, and is capable of supporting heavy gear assemblies, motors, machine parts and the like up to five hundred pounds in total weight. Although the use of an aerating nozzle, as mentioned earlier, holds down sp atter, it is sometimes desirable, in'the cleaning of large and bulky pieces, for example, to increase the effective space for spraying of the solvent safely and without loss, and the shield shown in FIGS. 3-5 is provided for such purpose. This shield comprises a back 36 having a turned down lip '37 at its top edge and two side pieces 38 and 39 hinged, by piano hinges 40 and 41, respectively at the vertical sides of the back 36. The side pieces are shown as being forwardly tapered, and the shield assembly in its operative condition is opened to U-shape and set on the sink-top just inside the back and side walls or flanges of the latter. The added containment of the spray thus provided is obvious, and when it is not necessary or desired to employ the shield assembly, the two sides 38 and 39 are folded inswardly against the back 36 and the latter then suspended from its top lip 37 on the back of the sink-top, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5.

It will accordingly be seen that the new cleaning stand provides economical and efiicient industrial cleaning wherever the need therefor exists. Fire hazard is minimized, with the cleaning operation concentrated in same manner and cleaned parts being permitted to drain dry on the sloping sink-top.

Other modes of applying the principle of the invenported on the sink-top for cleaning of the same.

2. A cleaning stand comprising an open top platform for support of a body to be cleaned, said open topplatform having-a drain outlet and sloping downwardly theretoward for draining through the same, container means independent of and spaced from said platform, said container providing a source of cleaning solution, fluid delivery means for supplying solution from said container to the upper surface of the platform for application thereof to a body supported on the latter, said fluid delivery means including a pipe disposed to project over the open top platform from a side thereof, adjustable mounting means for said pipe, said mounting means being adjustable to vary the extent of the projection of the pipe over the platform and to vary the angular position of the pipe relative to the upper surface of the platform, a length of flexible conduit connected to the end of the pipe above the platform, and means for returning solution from the drain outlet of the platform to said container.

3. A cleaning stand comprising a sink-top having a drain outlet, a container of cleaning solution adjacent said sink-top, means for conducting solution draining from said outlet to the bottom portion of said container,

3 pump means for withdrawing solution from the upper portion of said container, delivery conduit means connected to and extending from the pump means for supply of the cleaning solution to the sink-top, said delivery means including a flexible and a rigid conduit section,

the rigid conduit section being disposed to project over the sink-top, and bracket means for supporting said rigid section in such disposition, said bracket means being mounted at the periphery of the sink-top and adjustable therealong variably to position the support of the rigid section relative to the sink-top, said bracket means furtion may be employed, change being made as regards the ther providing angular and vertical adjustment of the rigid conduit section relative to the upper surface of the platform.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 53,511 Wheeler Mar. 27, 1866 396,129 Willits Jan. 15, 1889 973,810 Regan Oct. 25, 1910 1,306,089 Wagenhorst June 10, 1918 1,628,317 Hoevel May 10, 1927 1,791,696 Alexander Feb. 10, 1931 2,351,342 Kar-lstrom June 13, 1944 2,352,356 Albertson June 27, 1944 2,404,202 Winslow July 16, 1946 2,495,995 Warrens Jan. 31, 1950 2,595,838 Fuglie May 6, 1952 2,867,225 Zadernach Jan. 6, 1959 2,970,321 Rovell Feb. 7, 1961 2,971,520 Motis Feb. 14, 1961 

1. A CLEANING STAND COMPRISING A SINK-TOP HAVING A DRAIN OUTLET AND AN UPSTANDING PERIPHERAL WALL, A FOLDING SHIELD ASSEMBLY REMOVABLY RESTING ON SAID TOP IN OPENED CONDITION AND FORMING A PARTIAL ENCLOSURE EXTENDING APPRECIABLY ABOVE THE WALL THEREOF, SAID SHIELD ASSEMBLY FOLDING TO SUBSTANTIALLY FLAT CONDITION AND INCLUDING HANGER MEANS FOR SUSPENDING THE SAME FROM THE EDGE OF THE SINK-TOP WHEN NOT IN USE, AND MEANS FOR DISCHARG- 